A school-girl in London burned a copy of the Quran in school premises and was arrested on charges of inciting religious hatred...


According to a press report appeared in the Statesman, a Calcutta based daily, a 15-year-old school girl in London Burned an English translation of the Islamic holy book Koran within the school premises. Later, she was arrested by the police after a video of her burning Koran was posted on Facebook. On Friday, the 26th November, the school girl from Sandwell in Birmingham reportedly set an English translation of the Islamic holy book on fire, watched by other pupils in the school premises, the Sun reported.

Police said that the video has since been taken out of Facebook, and the girl was arrested on the suspicion of inciting religious hatred. Meanwhile, a 14-year-old boy, thought to have made a retaliatory attack on the girl on the social networking website, was arrested on charges of making threats. Both the teenagers were later granted bail, police said on Thursday.

Florida Church's plans to burn a Quran

terry-jones-florida-pastor
 Pastor Terry Jones

The present episode of Koran-burning follows the international outcry over the attempt of Pastor Terry Jones of a nondenominational church in Gainesville, the Dove World Outreach Center, in Florida, to burn a Quran on the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The organizers, led by Pastor Jones, called Islam as a religion of the devils and wanted that September 11th be observed as the "International Burn a Quran Day".

Pastor Terry Jones told CNN's Rick Sanchez, "We believe that Islam is the religion of the devil, that it's causing billions of people to go to hell, it is a deceptive religion, it is a violent religion and that is proven many, many times."

On another occasion, Pastor Jones said: "I mean ask yourself, have you ever really seen a really happy Muslim? As they're on the way to Mecca? As they gather together in the mosque on the floor? Does it look like a real religion of joy?" "No, to me it looks like a religion of the devil."

Jones also wrote book, titled "Islam is of the Devil". His church sells coffee mugs and shirts featuring the phrase. Muslims and many Christians --- including some evangelicals --- strongly condemn and oppose Jone's activities and initiatives.

Jones' plan to burn the Quran on 9/11 was also intended as a protest against an aggressive Muslim plan to build a giant Mosque, next to the 9/11 Ground Zero.

Jone's plat to burn the came came on the heels of initiative by the Islamic advocacy group, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), to host "Share the Quran" dinners to educate the American public during the month-long fasting of Ramadan beginning in August. In a news release, the group announced a campaign to give out 100,000 copies of the Quran to local, state and national leaders.

Political Pressure forced Pastor Jones to abandon Quran-burning

Ahead of the scheduled burning of the Quran by Pastor Jones, the administration of President Obama turned up the pressure on him, warning that "doing so could endanger U.S. troops and Americans everywhere”, with Obama himself joining the chorus of condemnation.

Despite criticism from the top U.S. general in Afghanistan, the White House and the State Department, as well as a host of religious leaders, Pastor Jones insisting on his planned burning of the Quran, saying that Constitution gives him the right to publicly set fire to the book that Muslims consider the word of God.

Gen. David Petraeus warned Tuesday in an e-mail to The Associated Press that "images of the burning of a Quran would undoubtedly be used by extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world — to inflame public opinion and incite violence."

Jones responded that he is also concerned but is "wondering, 'When do we stop?'"

"How much do we back down? How many times do we back down?" Jones told the AP.

"Instead of us backing down, maybe it's to time to stand up. Maybe it's time to send a message to radical Islam that we will not tolerate their behavior," he added.

In condemnation of the proposed event, CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said in a release: "American Muslims and other people of conscience should support positive educational efforts to prevent the spread of Islamophobia."

The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE), the nation's largest umbrella evangelical group, issued a statement urging the church to cancel the event, warning it could cause worldwide tension between the two religions.

"The NAE calls on its members to cultivate relationships of trust and respect with our neighbors of other faiths. God created human beings in his image, and therefore all should be treated with dignity and respect," it said in the statement.

Dove's Facebook page, set up for the September event, with more than 1,600 fans, said: "Eternal fire is the only destination the Quran can lead people to, so we want to put the Quran in it's [sic] place -- the fire!"

In condemnation of the Quran-burning event, pastor of another Florida church, said that his church will "not today, not ever" burn a Quran, even if a mosque is built near ground zero.

Having been forced to abandon the event due pressure from all sides, Jones flew to New York and appeared on NBC's "Today" show. He told the show that his goal was "to expose that there is an element of Islam that is very dangerous and very radical… we have definitely accomplished that mission."

Indian Christians condemn Quran burning in the US

Babu Thomas, an India-born Christian analyst, vehemently opposed Pastor Jones' Koran-burning program. On September 1, 2010, he said: Church leaders in India will condemn the burning of the Quran by some "fanatic" Christian groups in the US. Catholic and Protestants leader will come together in Mumbai on Wednesday to stress on Christianity's message of peace and condemn those acting contrary to it.”

The meeting was scheduled to be attended by the Catholic archbishop of Mumbai, Cardinal Oswald Gracias, along with bishops of the Protestant Church of North India and other Christian groups.

"We will speak out against a few Christian fanatics in USA. The tirade against Islam by some extremist Christians groups, particularly a little known preacher, pastor Terry Jones in Florida, is giving rise to misunderstandings,” spokesperson for the Catholic archbishop, Fr Savio Fernandes, told a local media.

"Jones has threatened to burn the Quran to commemorate 9/11. We will send out the message that preaching hatred goes against the tenets of Christianity," he continued.

Gul Kripalani, former president of the Indian Merchants' Chamber and an activist for Christian groups, said: "It is time we told the world that Christians do not believe in violence and hatred. We have to come out openly and stop the extremists from abroad who are spreading hate."

He urged Christians in India to take a stand against this issue.

muslims desicrate US flag
Muslims in Kabul trampling U.S. National Flag

It is interesting that people, Muslim or otherwise, come out in force to vociferously condemn a symbolic event like Pastor Jones' plan to burn the Quran. But, when Muslim militants chopped off a vital limb of a Christian Professor in Kerala, India, we did not hear the same loud condemnation, not even by Christians, let alone by Muslims, of India. Let us hear, what do Muslims, especially from Saudi Arabia say about the fact that there is not a single place of worship other than mosques in the whole of Saudi Arabia, while they are funding the Ground Zero mosque to export the 7th century way of life in the name of religion. There has to be balance---tolerance by both sides and acceptance of others way of life as well.

It is a real concern the symbolic burning of the Quran in Florida could enrage Muslims, who would unleash bloodshed upon minority communities in Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Nigeria and many other countries. But how to stop the Muslim violence against non-Muslims, occurring all over the world, even without any provocation, whatsoever! It is incumbent upon Muslim leaders and clerics issue fatwas allowing free discussion of Islam, free conversion from Islam to any religion of choice, free practice of any religion in any Muslim dominated country.

Koran, according to Anwar Shaikh, is a book of sex and violence. Koran and Islam propagate 7th century of Arab savagery and hence deserve to be rejected by the civilized people. Unless Muslim leaders and clerics take real action to imbue tolerance amongst Muslims, such provocations, in howsoever bad taste, would continue to spring up from time to time and justifiably so.

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